Draft key retainer having both deformable and spring retaining means



BLATTNER DRAFT KEY RETAINER HAVING BOTH DEFORMABLE Aug. 6, 1957 E,

AND SPRING RETAINING MEANS Filed Dec. 14, 1953 FIG. 2

FIG. 4

3 G v I F FIG. 1

Invenlor: Emil H. Blattner his Attorney United StatesPatent O DRAFT KEY RETAINER HAVING BOTH DEFORM- ABLE AND SPRING RETAINING MEANS Emil H. Blattner, Williamsville, N. Y., assignor to The Symington-Gould Corporation, Depew, N. Y., a corporation of Maryland Application December 14, 1953, SerialNo. 397,831

2 Claims. (Cl. 85-8.1)

This invention relates to draft key retainers and is an improvement on the key retainer of my Patent No. 2,638,809 of May 19, 1953.

The primary object of the invention is to provide a draft key retainer which is both positively locked against accidental removal and restrained against vertical movement to minimize shocks and thus prolong the life of the positive locking means.

Another object of the present invention is to provide a draft key retainer carrying deformable and spring elements which together cooperate to fix the key retainer against accidental displacement from its seat in the draft key.

A further object of the invention is to provide a draft key retainer carrying cooperating means for preventing accidental displacement of the key retainer from itsseat which at the same time permits relative rotative movement of the key retainer to enable it to accommodate itself to variations in the angularity of the draft key relative to the associated center sills.

An additional object of the invention is to provide in a draft key retainer carrying a deformable positive locking means, a spring element for resisting unseating of the key retainer by vibratory forces without impairing the ability of the key retainer to angle, as necessary, relative to the draft key to accommodate itself to the confronting face of the associated center sill structure.

Other objects and advantages of the invention will appear hereinafterin the detailed description, be particularly pointed out in the appended claims, and be illustrated in the accompanying drawings, in which:

Figure 1 is a plan view of a preferred form of the draft key retainer of the present invention, applied to a draft key.

Figure 2 is a side elevational view of the structure of Figure l, with the draft key and cheek plate shown in central longitudinal section.

Figure 3 is a transverse vertical sectional view taken along the lines 3-3 of Figure 2, with the key retainer shown in elevation; and

Figure 4 is a vertical sectional view taken along the lines 4-4 of Figure 3, with the draft key removed.

Referring now in detail to the drawings, in which like reference characters designate like parts, the draft key retainer of the present invention, designated generally as 1, has been shown applied to a draft key 2 of the conventional type, headed at one end (not shown) and having a vertically directed cylindrical key retainer seat 3 extending through it adjacent its tapered or free end 4. As will be understood, the tapered end of the draft key enables it to be inserted through slots provided for that purpose in the draft rigging and center sills of a railway car (not shown), and while holding these parts in assembled relation and serving to transmit forces from the draft rigging to the center sills, permits limited relative movement therebetween. The draft key thu both moves longitudinally and angles relative to the center sills, with each of the latter usually reinforced byan associated cheek plate 5 having an elongated slot 6 in which the draft key rides or travels. L

Since free to pass through the associated structure, the free end 4 of the draft key must have some means for preventing such passage and retaining the key in operable position. The draft key retainer 1 represents an improvement in key retainers of the type shown in my Patent No. 2,638,809. As in that patent, the key retainer 1 is comprised of a T-shaped body 7 having an upstanding or ture 3 in the draft key 2. This intermediate portion 10 is adapted to seat or fit in the seat 3 on application of the key retainer to the draft key and to be held in seated position by engagement of the underside 11 of the crosshead 9 with the upper face 12 of the draft key.

With both the intermediate portion 10 and its seat 3 cylindrically surfaced, the key retainer 1 has a somewhat loose fit with the draft key 2 and is enabled to pivot about the axis of its cylindrical portion relative to the draft key in response to service forces. In order that the key retainer will have maximum contact and thus minimum wear when brought into engagement with the cheek plate 5 through longitudinal inward shifting of the draft key 2, the inner or cheek plate-confronting vertical faces 13 of the shank 8 and 14 of the crosshead 9, respectively, below and above the intermediate cylindrical portion 10, are fiat," coplaner surfaces, inset relative to the periphery of the cylindrical portion 10 and disposed parallel to the rotative or pivotal axis of the retainer. Since such longitu dinal shifting of the draft key is desired to enable it to accommodate itself to the movement of the draft rigging relative to the center sills, the retainerseat 3, as usual, is normally spaced outwardly from the cheek plate 5 and the crosshead 9 is made of suflicient length on either side of the shank 8 to prevent it from turning at right angles to the cheek plate, thus ensuring that its inner face 14 will always be presented to the cheek plate. Since aiding in this regard and not encroaching on space needed for other purposes, the crosshead 9 preferably extends the full width:

of the draft key.

It will be noted that the shank 8, below the draftkey, has a transverse aperture 15. Conventionally, such an aperture is provided to receive a cotter pin (not shown) for holding the key retainer against accidental' vertical displacement from its seat. In the instantcon:

tainer in its seat.

spring or spring pin 17. Of the two elements, the locking rod 16 may be of circular or other suitable cross-section and has its upper or inner end 18 seated in a bore or aperture 19 of corresponding size and configuration in the crosshead 9. The bore 19 here extends transversely through the crosshead 9 and the upper end 18 of the bar 16 extends substantially its full length, the bar being fixed in the bore, as by swedging, preferably supplemented by a weld 20. Outwardly of the bore 19, the bar is bent downwardly to provide a downwardly extending portion 21 extending from the level of the bore 19 below the draft key 2. At the lower end of this downwardly extending or intermediate portion 21 the bar is again bent, this time inwardly, to provide a reentrant lower or free end 22. So configured, the bar is made of bendable or deformable material, such as commercial bar stock, so that it can be bent inwardly over the outer or free end i) a) 4 of the draft key until the free end 22 of the bar contacts the lower face 23 of the draft key.

As pointed out in my Patent 2,638,809, the provision of suchv a ;deformable locking'bar 16 enables the key retainer 1 to be locked over the end of the draft key 2 .and held against accidental removal, the deformability of the lockingbar at the same time enabling the key retainer to be removed when it is necessary to remove the draft key. While the locking bar 16 is effective as a lock, thedifliculty is that its deformability renders it subject to deformation by the hammer action of the draft key 2 under the vibratory forces to which the draft key is subjected in service and which tend to bounce the key retainer from its seat. This hammer action of the draft key on the locking bar 16 is here circumvented by the second element of the locking means, the spring pin 17. In the form shown, the spring pin is of L-shape and preferably of circular cross-section, with its lower leg 24 extending horizontally and fixed, as by swedging, in a recess or aperture 25 of like disposition and corresponding cross-section extending into the shank 8 from its inner face 13 at or adjacent the lower extremity of the cylindrical portion 10. Immediately outside the aperture 25 the spring pin 17 is bent sharply upwards to provide a normally inclined or oblique upper leg 26, substantially coextensive in length with the seat 3 in the draft key 2 and ending at its upper end at or slightly below the level of the upper face 12 of the draft key. As the cylindrical portion of the shank 8 with which the outer leg 26 of the spring pin 17 is substantially coextensive, is of but slightly less diameter than its seat 3, the spring pin 17, if only as thick as this difference, would be of insufiicient strength to be effective. There is therefore provided in the inner side of the cylindrical portion 10 an inwardly opening slot or groove 27 which is disposed parallel to the rotative axis of the key retainer and receives or accommodates the leg 26 sufiiciently to enable the later to be received in and contained by the seat 3.

Initially upwardly and outwardly inclined, the leg 26, as the key retainer is inserted in its seat, yields towards its slot 27 and, when the key retainer is fully seated, exerts a lateral force which presses the leg 26 at one side and the opposite face of the cylindrical portion 10 at the other, into tight contact with the seat 3. So held in its seat, the key retainer 1, through its spring pin 17, resists the vibratory forces applied to it in service and prevents these forces from being transmitted to the locking bar 16. At the same time, the spring pin 17, while yieldably resisting, permits rotative movement of the key retainer relative to the draft key, so that the inner flat faces 13 and 14 of the key retainer are enabled to accommodate themselves to angling of the draft key relative to the center sills. It has been mentioned that the leg 26 of the spring pin 17 is substantially coextensive with the seat. This construction serves two purposes. First, it provides extended contact between the spring element and the seat, and second, it prevents the upper end of the 4 leg from gouging into the seat and interfering with the removal of the key retainer, when necessary.

From the above detailed description it will be apparent that there has been provided an improved draft key retainer which is locked to the draft key by a bendable element and in which the bendable element is protected against accidental bending from service shocks by a spring element resiliently securing the key retainer in its seat in the draft key. It should be understood that the described and disclosed embodiment is merely exemplary of the invention and that all modifications are intended to be included which do not depart either from the spirit of the invention or the scope of the appended claims.

Having described my invention, I claim:

1. A draft key retainer comprising a shank, a crosshead integral therewith, a deformable locking bar fixed at one end to said crosshead and having its free end deformable about a draft key, a substantially cylindrical intermediate portion on said shank and loosely seatable in a seat of corresponding configuration in said draft key, an L-shaped spring pin having one leg fixed in said shank intermediate ends thereof and a second leg normally inclined outwardly therefrom toward said crosshead and a laterally opening groove extending axially of said cylindrical portion for partially accommodating said second leg on compression thereof by said seat, said second leg on seating of said retainer in said seat extending substantially to said crosshead and outwardly of said groove acting laterally on said seat for yieldably resisting movement of said key retainer relative thereto.

2. A draft key retainer comprising a shank, a crosshead at an upper end of and integral with said shank, a substantially cylindrical intermediate portion on said shank loosely seatable in and substantially coextensive with a seat of corresponding configuration in a draft key, a locking bar having an upper end fixed in a transverse bore in said crosshead, a deformable portion on said bar outwardly of said crosshead and deformable about said draft key, an L-shaped spring pin having a lower leg fixed in a transverse bore in said shank and an upper leg normally inclined upwardly and outwardly therefrom, and a groove in said intermediate portion disposed substantially parallel to the axis thereof and opening laterally therefrom for partially accommodating said second leg on compression thereof by said seat, said second leg on seating of said retainer in said seat extending substantially to said crosshead and outwardly of said groove yieldably engaging said seat for resisting movement of said key retainer relative thereto.

References Cited in the file of this patent UNITED STATES PATENTS 354,723 McKenzie Dec. 21, 1886 664,027 OMeara Dec. 18, 1900 845,589 Smith Feb. 26, 1907 2,399,069 Skinner Apr. 13, 1946 2,638,809 Blattner May 19, 1953 

